In its latest effort to expand sales and relevance with younger shoppers, Tiffany commissioned pop singer Lady Gaga to become the face of its fashion-jewelry collection. She appeared in a Super Bowl ad Sunday -- which was shot in black and white and featured her talking about creativity and rebellion -- and performed during the game’s halftime show. Tiffany also is coming up on Valentine’s Day, a key selling season for the jeweler.
Question of Timing
The timing makes Cumenal’s departure especially surprising, but Tiffany said it was maintaining the financial outlook it gave in January. Earnings are expected to decline by no more than a mid-single-digit percentage in the current fiscal year, and global net sales will fall by a low-single-digit percentage.
The jeweler said in January that it didn’t expect any “significant improvement” to the economic challenges this year but will focus on upgrading its customer experience, product assortment, marketing and supply chain.
The past week marked a series of management changes in the luxury industry. Ralph Lauren Corp. CEO Stefan Larsson is departing after clashing with its namesake founder over the company’s creativity direction. Barneys New York replaced its CEO with Chief Operating Officer Daniella Vitale. And Riccardo Tisci, the creative director of LVMH’s fashion brand Givenchy, left the company.
More management turnover could come if the sluggish sales continue at luxury companies, which are coping with aging customers, Yarbrough said.
“These companies have long histories of high-single-digit revenue growth, and if they continue to post little growth, I would expect more changes,” he said. “The industry has to adapt due to changing tastes and the fact the baby boomers are retiring.”
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.